NASHVILLE — Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty today joined with local officials in welcoming Marathon Heater, Inc. to Brownville, Tenn. The company’s $1 million investment will create 60 jobs during the next three years. Marathon Heater is a leading manufacturer of industrial-grade heating elements and temperature sensors.

“I’m happy to welcome Marathon Heater, Inc., to Brownsville and to Tennessee,” Haslam said. “Marathon’s decision to locate in Haywood County is an example of the results we continue to see with our Jobs4TN economic development plan, and I appreciate the company’s investment in our state as we work to make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs.”

“Under Governor Haslam’s leadership, we have continued to hone our recruitment efforts and create a business-friendly environment for companies to locate,” Hagerty said. “Marathon Heater’s new Brownsville location is the result of a successful partnership between the state, local officials and the company.”

Texas-based Marathon specializes in custom designed and manufactured industrial products, such as industrial cartridge heaters, industrial silicone rubber heaters, industrial nozzle heaters and industrial air heaters. The company also manufactures the band heaters, ceramic heaters, mica heaters and air heaters.

“We are excited to be expanding our presence into Tennessee,” said Mike Wrob, president, Marathon Heater, Inc. “The expansion into this new market presents a wealth of new opportunities for our company and is indicative of further success for our future.”

“We are excited to add Marathon Heater to the list of Brownsville companies. I know they will be a great corporate citizen and look forward to a successful relationship between Marathon and our community,” Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith said.

Brownsville City Mayor Jo Matherne welcomed the announcement, and said, “We are so pleased that Marathon Heater made the decision to locate here. Their commitment to Brownsville has enabled us to create 60 new jobs as they expand their production here in Tennessee. We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial association with them.”

The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies which help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. The department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth. To find out more, go to www.tn.gov/ecd.

About Marathon Heater, Inc.

Marathon Heater, Inc. was founded in 1996, with 3 employees and one product, cartridge heaters. Our commitment to customer service and engineering support has brought rapid growth. In 2002 we were selected by Inc. magazine as one of the 500 fastest growing privately held companies in the United States. Marathon currently has 2 manufacturing locations, our 40,000 square foot headquarters in Del Rio, TX and a 12,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Udaipur, India to service our eastern hemisphere customers. The Texas location employs 110. The company was selected to the Inc. 5000 list in 2011.